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TEXT-BOOKS IN 

AMERICAN HISTORY 



A REPORT PRESENTED BY THE 

COMMITTEE ON TEXT-BOOKS 

OCTOBER 15, 1898 



(Reprinted from the Educational Review) 



PUBLICATIONS 

OF THE ASSOCIATION 

No. 3 



. >\ O '] 



V 
TEXT-BOOKS IN AMERICAN HISTORY^ 

In submitting to the Association the first report of the 
Committee on Text-books, it seems proper that a statement 
of the principles on which the Committee have proceeded 
should first be made. 

The Committee early reached the conclusion that a prac- 
tical, rather than a purely theoretical, treatment of the field 
allotted to it was not only most in harmony with the 
examples set in previous meetings of the Association, but was 
also likely to prove of most interest and value to teachers, 
whether within or without our own membership. Accord- 
ingly, it was decided to choose for the first report a particular 
portion of the historical field now generally cultivated by sec- 
ondary schools, to examine critically a selected list of text- 
books in that field, and to offer such observations on the 
general text-book situation in that department as seemed 
either naturally suggested or particularly called for by our 
investigations. 

For the present report the Committee have chosen Ameri- 
can history. A number of well-known text-books have been 
carefully examined, in accordance with an uniform plan, and 
some of the results embodied in the pamphlet which has been 
placed in your hands. It is hardly necessary to say that the 
list of books chosen makes no pretensions to completeness; 
indeed, it probably includes less than half of the text-books 
in American history still used, more or less widely, in the 
schools. The aim has been, rather, to make the list repre- 
sentative of the general average of books now in use, particu- 
larly in New England. It will be found to comprise most of 

' This report, with the accompanying notes, was presented by the Standing Com- 
mittee on Text-Books to the New England History Teachers' Association, at its 
meeting in Boston, October 15, 1898. 



2 Educational Review [December 

the recent and best-known manuals, together with some 
older and less valuable ones, which, because either of their 
wide use or of their typical character, it seemed well to dis- 
cuss. With a single exception, the list is limited to narrative 
text-books covering the whole period of American history. 
The Committee would have been glad to widen the scope of 
their inquiry, and to have included not only as complete a list 
as could be made of text-books now in the market, but also 
lists of books dealing with special periods, topical analyses for 
class use, reference manuals for teachers, and the like; but the 
labor involved in such an undertaking, together with the fact 
that, from unavoidable causes, the full working force of the 
Committee has not been available, compelled us to deal at 
present with but a portion of the field. 

In the preparation of the notes now submitted, we have 
chosen to impose upon ourselves certain definite restrictions. 
There seemed to be no good reason why the Committee 
should resolve themselves into a select group of book- 
reviewers, and assume to relieve teachers from the necessity of 
consulting standard periodicals in which worthy publications 
are regularly appraised. Nor have we felt that we ought either 
to praise or to condemn any book as a whole; for to do so 
would turn the report into a free advertisement for authors 
and publishers. On the other hand, most teachers are glad 
to know, from a disinterested source, something of the for- 
mal make-up of a book before deciding upon its possible 
adoption — its size, its equipment of maps, illustrations, and 
pedagogical aids; its distribution of space among the broad 
divisions of the subject; its positive limitations or deficiencies, 
if it have any, and the grade of pupils for whom it is designed. 
The notes now before you aim to answer, briefly and con- 
cisely, some of these questions. To suppose that they will 
relieve the teacher from the necessity of personally examin- 
ing any book, before adopting it for his class, is wholly to 
misinterpret the intentions of the Committee; but we have 
lioped that the notes might help teachers to decide whether 
■or not they cared to examine a book at all. 

It might seem, at first thought, that the appointment by 



1S98J Text-books in Ainerica7t history 3 

this Association of a committee on text-books was a sufficient 
ground for assuming the wisdom and necessity of text-books 
in teaching history in secondary schools. Occasional re- 
marks in previous meetings of the Association, however, 
together with similar expressions elsewhere, from time to 
time, seem to indicate that such an assumption would not be 
universally indorsed, and that to some teachers, at least, the 
text-book appears rather in the light of an evil, to be toler- 
ated because of present human weakness, but for deliverance 
from which one should earnestly pray. If such were the pre- 
vailing view, then the function of the Committee might per- 
haps best be performed by displaying, at each meeting of the 
Association, a suitably inscribed banner, on which the words, 
'' Down with the text-book! " should have chief place. 

The Committee are unable to subscribe to such an extreme 
view of the matter. It is true that the teaching of history has 
long proceeded under great and serious disadvantages. The 
text-books have often been crudely put together, partial or 
inaccurate in their statements, ill balanced and misleading in 
their general treatment. It is equally true that, in recent 
years, there has been a marked growth of interest in the so- 
called library or laboratory method, and that the place and 
meaning of history in the school curriculum have greatly 
widened. But we cannot think that the prevalence of inade- 
quate text-books, however annoying, or the introduction of 
newer methods, however valuable, have placed the text-book, 
as such, in the catalogue of things no longer needed: on the 
contrary, we are of the opinion that the text-book is of indis- 
pensable usefulness in the elementary study of any historical 
field. The day has, to be sure, gone by when a completely 
satisfactory presentation of the subject is to be sought for 
within the covers of a single book; but it is also to be hoped 
that the day may never come when teachers or pupils shall 
think it necessary to discard scholarly attempts to sum up for 
them the assured knowledge in their chosen field. It is no 
true spirit of historical research which is willing to accept 
only such statements of fact as the student himself has per- 
sonally investigated; it is. rather, an essential trait of the 



4 Educatio7ial Review [December 

modern historical student that, while he asserts his right to 
investigate any question for himself, he does not exercise that 
right save where he has reason to doubt the thoroughness or 
sufficiency of the work of others. 

The Committee, without expressing any opinion in refer- 
ence to methods of study, are unanimous in favoring the 
largest possible use of collateral reading and the largest 
training in methods of historical investigation which 
time will permit. They cannot, however, as has been said, 
think that the study of history in elementary' schools can dis- 
pense with text-books. Beyond all question, there is a con- 
siderable body of assured fact in the field of American history; 
it is the result of the devoted labors of many trained inves- 
tigators: it is not open to cavil or dispute; to doubt it is to 
write one's self down a fool. So much of this body of fact 
as is adapted to the needs of the classroom, the pupil is clearly 
entitled to have presented to him in usable and labor-saving 
form. The revolt against text-books is in reality a revolt 
against hard, formal, lifeless methods of teaching, which re- 
duced history to a dreary succession of names and dates, and 
made repetition of an author's phrases a sufficient criterion of 
historical knowledge. The trouble is not in being obliged to 
use a text-book, but in being obliged to use a poor one — not 
so much in the failure of the writer to present his matter 
properly as in the often-time failure of the teacher to bring 
the subject-matter of the book into vital connection with the 
pupil's mind. 

The limitations of text-books in American history have 
been made very apparent to the members of the Committee 
in the course of their inquiry. A large number of manuals 
still extensively used are, in their judgment, little adapted to 
the work they profess to do. The older style of text-book 
was a curious product. Its author was frequently a literary 
hack, ready to compile a dictionary, annotate a classical text, 
or write an algebra, as occasion offered. Of special training 
in history he had none; but he had read a good deal, had a 
number of apt stories at his command, and made up for his 
limited knowledge by a vivid and pliable imagination. To 



1898] Text-books in American history 5 

such a writer, the preparation of a school book in American 
history was an easy task. Details aside, the general formula 
was quite unvarying. Say nothing about the physical fea- 
tures of the continent, but extol the virtues of the noble In- 
dian; dwell on the brilliant intellect, the undaunted courage, 
and the magnificent faith of Columbus, the hardships of the 
Pilgrims, the grim sternness of the Puritans, the simplicity of 
the Quakers, and the quaintness of the Dutch; show how the 
Revolution was due solely to the brutal tyranny of the 
British, and how Washington and Franklin had, in supreme 
degree, all the virtues ever exhibited by men in their respec- 
tive spheres, and not a single fault; characterize the Constitu- 
tion as " the greatest product of the human mind," but avoid 
much reference to it after its adoption; cut up the period 
after 1789 into four-year morsels, and give to the mastication 
of each about the same amount of space; dwell on the enor- 
mities of England after the peace of 1783, and the glorious 
victories of the war of 181 2, not omitting mention of Jack- 
son's cotton bales and Perry's green-timber fleet; show what 
a lovely thing the era of good feeling was, and how the South 
went all wrong about nullification, slavery, and the Civil War; 
add in an appendix the Constitution, the Declaration of 
Independence, and a list of Presidents; and then enliven the 
whole by a profusion of fancy pictures, including " Washing- 
ton Crossing the Delaware," " A Winter at Valley Forge," 
" An Emigrant Train," and " Welcome, EngHshmen! " — and 
you had a book admirably adapted to the training of citi- 
zens and patriots. 

On such stuff were many of us fed in our youth. 

It is still, unfortunately, true that authors can be found to 
write, and publishers to print, text-books framed after such a 
model; but there can be no question that their productions 
are no longer received with the favor they once were, and 
that their early disappearance, save perhaps in remote dis- 
tricts, may confidently be hoped for. On the other hand, 
the Committee have been impressed with the generally high 
character of recent text-books in this department. The 
average ones are immeasurably superior to the best of a gen- 



6 Educational Revieiv [December 

eration ago. Witli few exceptions, they are the work of 
specialists, who are not less able to write a large book because 
they have chosen to write a small one. One no longer ex- 
pects arbitrary' outlines, or dry and formal statements, much 
less the biased emphasis so often mistaken for patriotism. 
Our text-book writers, as a rule, now tell only the truth, and 
tell as much of it as the immature mind can assimilate; they 
strive after solidity of substance as well as attractiveness of 
form; arid they view the pupil as a person naturally interested 
in all that has been done in the world, rather than as a child 
to whom the acquisition of knowledge is always and forever 
a dull and grievous task. 

In the various characteristics which go to make up a satis- 
factory text-book in American history, it may frankly be said 
that recent writers show many intimations of approaching 
perfection. The extent to which they fall short is the meas- 
ure of the teacher's disadvantage. The Committee have 
hardly felt able to draw, either for themselves or for the Asso- 
ciation, a picture of the ideal text-book; on the contrary, they 
have kept ever before them the fact that the teacher is a more 
important factor than the book he uses; that a teacher with- 
out an individuality of his own can scarcely be called a 
teacher at all; and that the kind of pupils to be dealt with, 
and the time and facilities available for the work, are factors 
of which no one book can take universal account. In criti- 
cising, accordingly, the list of books selected, the Committee 
have sought rather to keep in mind certain characteristics 
which, in their judgment, every text-book should possess, 
and to test each work by these standards. 

The broad natural divisions of a manual in American his- 
tory seem to be, first, some account of the physical geography 
of North America; then, in order, the successive periods of 
discover}'^ and exploration, the colonial development, the 
struggle for independence, the period of the Confederation, 
the constitutional period from 1789 to the close of the second 
war with Great Britain, the period from 181 5 to the outbreak 
of the Civil War, the Civil War itself, and, finally, the period 
from 1865 to the present time. 



1898] Text-books in Ainerican history 7 

Of these several periods or natural divisions, the first is, 
with few exceptions, either systematically ignored or else 
treated with excessive brevity. It would seem as though 
ever}' teacher of history must by this time realize the value 
and necessity of physical geography in connection with any 
historical course; but such does not seem to be the opinion 
of the text-book writers. Of the books noted in the list be- 
fore you, those of Channing and Scudder are the only ones 
which give a proper exposition of the physical conditions of 
the continent, or show the bearing of these conditions on the 
course of the history. Most of the books either make no 
reference to the subject whatever, or give it but brief inci- 
dental mention. One can sympathize with the pupil who 
pictured the mountains of western New York as a solid mass 
of rock, with precipitous sides 1200 feet high, and who ex- 
cused Cornwallis's lack of success in the South by explaining 
that the whole region was a swamp between the mountains 
and the sea. 

Early writers of text-books made much of the period of 
discovery and early exploration, and dwelt on its romantic 
and thrilling experiences. Recent writers show an almost 
uniform tendency to keep this period strictly subordinate. If 
the result is not always happy, it is often as much because the 
subject does not readily lend itself to brief and interesting 
treatment, as because the writer shows any lack of skill. 

When we reach the colonial period, we find two classes of 
writers. Those of the one class lay chief stress on the story of 
our national beginnings, while those of the other subordinate 
the account of our national origins to a fuller treatment of 
the revolutionary and constitutional periods. The histories 
of Eggleston, Fiske, and Higginson may be taken as illustra- 
tions of the first class mentioned. The Committee do not 
think that any hard and fast lines can be drawn at this point, 
or any fixed rule of proportion adopted. They are, however, 
struck by the fact that the literary interest of works like those 
just named is often out of proportion to their value as 
all-round presentations of the subject, and that the tendency 
to dwell on picturesque and relatively unimportant incidents. 



8 Educational Review [December 

for the sake of enlivening the narrative, contributes to make 
the work an entertaining reading book rather than a useful 
text-book. No one of these authors has, in our judgment, 
succeeded in giving a well-ordered view of American history 
as a whole. On the other hand, the disposition to subordi- 
nate the colonial period may undoubtedly be carried so far as 
to obscure the real foundations of our national life. For 
practical purposes, a clear, concise, and systematic account of 
the colonial period, omitting all details not necessary to make 
clear the course of development, seems to be all that is 
needed in the average high-school text-book; and the Com- 
mittee think that this can, as a rule, be adequately set forth 
in a third of the compass of the volume. 

If the handling of the colonial period illustrates the author's 
personal interests and his sense of proportion, the treatment 
of the struggle for independence tests his fairness and impar- 
tiality. In discussing the causes of the Revolution, text- 
book writers have sounded pretty much the whole scale of 
motives. England has been pictured, on the one hand, as an 
arbitrary oppressor, and, on the other, as the helpless victim 
of political environment. Under the influence of deeper 
study and a keener sense of justice, however, the element of 
bitterness which so often entered into the discussion of this 
subject has largely disappeared; and, while the treatment of 
the Revolution in the text-books still leaves much to be de- 
sired, it is now seldom dogmatic and unsympathetic. 

The period of the Confederation is treated w^ith great 
brevity by nearly all of the writers under consideration, and 
few of them devote much space to the fomiation and adop- 
tion of the Constitution, or to comparison of the Constitution 
with the Articles which it superseded. Undoubtedly, the 
period is a difficult one, and one also on which our knowledge 
is as yet deficient; but there is great room for improvement 
at this point, especially in the grouping of events and the 
indication of causal connections. 

The period since 1789 is variously handled. The larger 
number of books still follow, more or less closely, the regular 
succession of Presidential administrations, and group their 



1898] Text-books in American history 9 

facts with something of mathematical exactness. The Com- 
mittee feel that such an arrangement has little besides 
chronological convenience to commend it, and that a topical 
treatment of the whole period is the logical and appropriate 
method. Some of the recent manuals, such as Channing's 
and Scudder's, have made praiseworthy advancement in this 
direction. The second war with Great Britain is now com- 
monly dismissed with the brief mention, while Gordy alone 
pays special attention to the opening of the West. Similarly, 
international relations, so important in the colonial period, 
are but lightly referred to after 181 5, save at the time of the 
official enunciation of the Monroe Doctrine. 

The constitutional period is strewn with controverted 
points, and the person who should read a dozen text-books 
in succession could hardly fail to get some amusement out of 
the efforts of the writers to assume an impartial and yet defi- 
nite position. The one greatest issue of American politics, 
of course, has been slavery; and the apparently unavoidable 
necessity ,of taking sides on that question has been a thorn in 
the flesh to the text-book makers. In the years immediately 
following the war of the Rebellion — the years which saw the 
great growth of interest in the study of American history — 
the dominant opinion of the North in regard to the " peculiar 
institution " of the South was definite and vigorous, but 
hardly sympathetic; and instructors of youth could scarce 
forbear dwelling on the evils of slavery, and picturing the 
South as marching perversely, through long years, to its final 
ruin. To the average Northern patriot, slavery and all its 
accompaniments were moral evils, wholly without excuse; 
and he wished that fact taught to his children. But as time 
healed the wounds of war, and a new South rose upon the 
ruins of the old, thoughtful students, especially those too 
young to remember for themselves anything of the war, came 
to think that there might, after all, be something to say on 
the other side; and we began to have school books that, in a 
way, apologized for the South, and explained the adherence 
to slavery on scientific rather than moral grounds. Here, 
again, there is a middle way; and the best of our recent books 



lO Educational Review [December 

treat these questions of sectional divergence with imparti- 
ality, and in a true historical spirt. It is no longer thought 
necessary to apologize for slavery; but it is no longer permis- 
sible to treat the subject with -passion and blare of trumpets. 
That a small section of the public is still reluctant to have the 
story of our immediate past told without bias is shown in 
occasional outbursts from Grand Army posts; but the good 
work goes on, in spite of the wrath of men. 

It is possible to sum up, though in general terms, these 
various formal characteristics. Of the eighteen text-books 
examined by the Committee, only two offer an adequate 
exposition of the physical features of the continent. In the 
more recent books the native races and the periods of dis- 
covery and early exploration are treated with marked brevity, 
and the colonial period, with a few notable exceptions, is sub- 
ordinated. There is a growing disposition to exhibit more 
fully and impartially the causes of the separation from Eng- 
land; but an uniform topical treatment of the constitutional 
period is not yet general. The discussion of such contro- 
verted questions as nullification and slavery is almost uni- 
formly fair and void of offense, though, in the judgment of 
some of the Committee, decidedly lacking in thoroughness 
and grasp. The treatment of the period subsequent to 1865 
does not aim higher than a chronological enumeration of 
important events. 

As regards details, the Committee would note an increas- 
ing tendency to reduce strictly military movements to their 
lowest terms, and to emphasize the battles of statesmen and 
politicians more than those of soldiers and sailors. The re- 
moval of the tomahawk, the musket, and the 70-gun frigate 
from the chief places in our national synagogue is an advance 
step for which teachers and the thoughtful public may well 
be grateful. An important exception to the rule, however, 
is found in the treatment of the war of the Rebellion. As 
we have left the great struggle for national consistency 
further behind us, it has become possible to study its details 
more closely; and an examination of text-books issued virithin 
the last fifteen years shows, on the whole, an increasing pro- 



1898] Text-books in American history n 

portion of space devoted to the purely military phases of the 
war. The Committee note with satisfaction the diminish- 
ing emphasis on the merely picturesque elements in Ameri- 
can history, among writers who aim at balance and propor- 
tion. The long chapters once allotted to the manners and 
customs of the Indians, and the hardships of the log-cabin 
period among the whites, are being condensed into para- 
graphs, and the pupil referred to contemporary sources for a 
more truthful portrayal of such matters. What are com- 
monly classed as administrative questions, such as the civil 
service, the treatment of the Indians, the public-land policy, 
and many others, are hardly more than touched upon by most 
of our authors, although McMaster specially emphasizes gen- 
eral economic characteristics. 

There remain to be considered four points by which the 
usefulness and success of an historical text-book are fairly to 
be judged. Those are the illustrations, the maps, the indica- 
tions of collateral reading, and the pedagogical aids. 

How far a school book in history should also be a picture 
book is, perhaps, a matter of taste; but the usefulness of pic- 
tures, when wisely chosen and intelligently used, is unde- 
niably great. It must be confessed, however, that history has 
suffered much at the hands of art. The fancy picture, rest- 
ing upon no historical data known to man, has been the bane 
of our school books. The aim of such pictures is to interest 
and instruct, but their efifect is more often to mislead and mis- 
inform. Who sketched for us the death of De Soto, or the 
first landing of Columbus? What pictorial artist accom- 
panied Washington to Fort DuOuesne, or saw the soldiers 
of Wolfe scale the cliff at Quebec? Who tells us that Puri- 
tan women always sat bareheaded on a log, with their feet in 
the snow, while their husbands negotiated with the Indians? 
or that Miles Standish performed the superb muscular feat 
of holding his shooting-irons at arm's length before him, as 
he marched through the forest? or that Dutchmen of note 
always sat with one leg on a chair, puffing at a pipe of un- 
measured capacity? To name these things is to condemn 
them; yet it has been possible, within a brief period, for one of 



1 2 Educational Review [December 

the most profusely illustrated text-books on our list to be 
issued, with pictures largely of this unreal character. 

The Committee do not wish to express themselves as 
opposed to pictures, but they -feel bound to condemn, in the 
strongest terms, the use of fancy pictures in school books. 
On the other hand, they do not think that such illustrations 
alone as those inserted, for example, in Johnston's history — 
state seals, flags, and similar formal objects — are quite what is 
desired. In their opinion, the illustrations should be drawn, 
as far as possible, from contemporary sources, they should be 
of historical value and significance, and they should invariably 
be inserted where they logically belong. A few of the more 
recent text-books, among which may be mentioned those of 
Montgomery, Channing, and McMaster, have pictures of such 
character; but it still remains true that no text-book in this 
field has yet used illustrations with anything like the success 
with which they are used in Gardiner's Student's history of 
England. 

Interest in historical geography is of comparatively recent 
growth in the United States, and has not yet spread anywhere 
near as widely as it ought among teachers, either in colleges 
or in secondary schools. Few of the maps in the books 
examined by the Committee are entirely satisfactory, most 
of them being either inaccurate, or poorly drawn, or both. 
To be sure, the errors are often small; but they are errors, 
nevertheless. The increased use of sketch maps is a feature 
to be commended, though here, again, the quality often 
leaves much to be desired. The striking similarity of many 
of the maps to those found in certain well-known reference 
books seems to indicate a common, though uncredited, origin 
for some of them; and more than one text-book on our list 
would, we fear, be lacking some of its splendor if its author 
had observed the Scripture which saith, " Thou shalt not 
steal." 

Systematic collateral reading is now a recognized method 
in the teaching of history, and recent writers of text-books 
generally aim to provide for it by inserting selected lists of 
books likely to be available for such study. While, as has 



1898] Text-books in American history 13 

already been said, it does not fall within the province of the 
Committee to express any opinion in regard to methods of 
teaching, they are disposed cordially to commend the use of 
a reference library wherever one is to be had, and to welcome 
the efiforts of writers to provide suitable lists of books for stu- 
dent use. In their opinion, however, such references should 
accompany the text, either in the margin or in footnotes, and 
should not be exclusively massed either at the beginning of 
each chapter or at the end of the book. Select lists of books, 
however well chosen, seem to them of limited practical use- 
fulness unless associated closely with the portion of the text 
which they are intended to illustrate. None of the books 
examined, if w^e except the Sheldon-Barnes volume, makes 
more than occasional reference to original or contemporary 
sources. The amount of such material now available, in 
carefully edited reprints, leads the Committee to think that 
the systematic use of it ought to be greatly increased. 

Lastly, most text-books in history are now equipped with 
something in the way of pedagogical aids. The simplest 
form of these takes the shape of perfunctory questions on the 
text, placed at the foot of the page or at the end of the chap- 
ter. If such devices ever served any useful purpose, the 
Committee have been unable to think what it could have 
been. A step forw^ard was taken when topical analyses, pre- 
sumably for blackboard use, were inserted at convenient 
points. Some early writers called them " skeletons," and all 
but a few of those examined by the Committee seem to merit 
the name; for while they are harmless, they are dry, hard, and 
dead. Most of this sort of thing a live teacher can best draw 
for himself. Suggestive questions and topics for pupils stand 
on a different footing, and many of these aids not only dis- 
play intelligence and ingenuity, but can hardly fail to stimu- 
late those for whom they are intended. The most elaborate 
pedagogical apparatus with which the Committee are familiar 
is that prepared by Miss Thompson for Channing's Student's 
history, and contains much that may be profitably used even 
by teachers for v^hose classes the book itself is too advanced. 

While the investigations of the Committee have brought 



14 Educational Review [December 

to their notice much that is imperfect, and not a Httle that 
they can but condemn, their general conclusion is one of en- 
couragement and hopefulness. The teacher of American 
history has never had as good tools to work with as are pro- 
vided for him to-day. In all that pertains to formal struct- 
ure, proportion, balance, and unbiased truthfulness, the bet- 
ter class of text-books show a steady advance. They are not, 
we think, as perfect in their way as text-books in Greek. 
Latin, and physics are in theirs; but they are certainly much 
better than they ever were. Their great and conspicuous 
failure, as it seems to us, is that they are not interesting. 
The old-style history, such as some of us studied in our 
youth, often had, in spite of its glaring defects, a certain 
picturesqueness and vividness, a certain suggestion of reality, 
which its modern successor lacks. We learn to-day from our 
text-books a vast number of things which our fathers did, 
and through doing which they are said to have made the 
State; but we are not, as a rule, made to see just zvhy they 
did them, or, for that matter, how they could have done them 
without being dreadfully bored. Are our national annals 
really dull and tame? Have the great issues over which men 
fought with sincerity, learning, and zeal no present interest 
for us? Along this line, we think, will be the progress of the 
immediate future. Just now, indeed, the teacher of Ameri- 
can history finds a new and heavy burden laid upon him. 
For years we have been demanding that the makers of text- 
books should subordinate purely military incidents to the 
general course of events, and have been insisting that the 
victories of peace should be given a greater prominence than 
those of war. To a considerable degree the demand has been 
heeded, and the teaching of our history has been brought 
more and more into accord with our historic poHcy. Since 
last we met as an Association, however, the whole country 
has been stirred with the excitement of foreign war, and our 
youth have seen, in all classes, an awakening of interest in the 
nation's doings in which military and naval successes, physi- 
cal prowess, and territorial expansion have held chief place. 
The teacher mav well view with concern the effect of our war 



1898] Text-books in American history 15 

with Spain upon the teaching of American history in second- 
ary schools. We shall certainly hear a good deal of specious 
talk about patriotism, and we cannot expect an easy task in 
convincing pupils that the military hero is but one kind of a 
hero, after all. Your Committee feel that the situation is 
too critical to be lightly ignored; but they feel, also, that the 
gains already made in the direction of better books and better 
methods of instruction have in them the essential elements of 
permanence, and that, while not unmindful of the dangers 
and discouragements, it will not be necessary to fall back or 
give way. For after everything else is said and done, the one 
sure hold of history, as of every other study in the curricu- 
lum, is not in the knowledge it imparts or the mental train- 
ing it gives, but in the intellectual and moral interest it 
arouses and maintains. It is precisely this that our text- 
books have not, in any large measure, yet attained; but for 
the coming of it — an intelligent, truthful, sane, and living 
interest — we think we may confidently hope. 
Respectfully submitted, 

William MacDonald, 

Bowdoin College, Chairman 
Charles F. A. Currier, 

Massachusetts Institute of Technology 
Edward G. Bourne 

Yale University 
Caroline Close 

English High School, Cambridge, Mass, 
Elizabeth Holbrook 

State Normal School, Framingham, Mass. 
J. EsTON Phyfe 

High School, Hartford, Conn. 

NOTES ON TEXT-BOOKS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

I. A New Grammar School History of the United States. By John J. 
Anderson. New York : Maynard, Merrill & Co., 1897. 

Contains 448 pages, with meager index. There are 8 full-page colored 
maps, and 29 maps in black and white. The 97 illustrations comprise 
numerous fancy pictures. 

Helps are plentiful, comprising review outlines and chronological tables 
at the end of each chapter, the usual tables of Presidents, States, etc., perti- 



1 6 Ed2icatio7ial Review [December 

nent extracts in the form of foot-notes, and 18 pages of notes at the end of 
the volume. There are no references to collateral reading. 

Of the 337 pages of text, 33 are allotted to discovery and exploration, 91 
to the colonial period, 61 to the struggle for independence, 3 to the period 
of the Confederation, 37 to the peripd 1789-1815, 42 to the period 1815-61, 
and 60 to the period since 1861. 

With the exception of the exposition of the causes of the Revolution, 
which is somewhat narrow, the general treatment of the subject is clear, 
orderly, and impartial, though lacking distinctive features. The style is 
simple and readable. 

2. Studies in American History. By M. S. and E. Barnes. Boston : 

Heath, 1893. 

Contains 431 pages, with good index. Of the 22 maps, 4 are colored, 
9 are full-page, and 3 double-page. The maps illustrating French settle- 
ment and the land claims of the thirteen English colonies follow MacCoun. 
There are three plans of military operations during the Revolution. The 
illustrations, 104 in number, are well chosen, but tiie portraits are poorly 
executed. 

The work is not a narrative text-book. Each period is represented by 
a series of well-chosen extracts from sources, connected by brief paragraphs 
by the authors. A list of important events is given at the end of each 
period, with accompanying questions ; there is also a study of the text at the 
end of each chapter. References to collateral reading follow each chapter, 
with a detailed list of authorities at the end of the volume. 

About half of the space is devoted to the period before 1789, while 30 pages 
suffice for the period from 1789 to 181 5. There is no account of the physical 
features of the continent. In general, the later portions of the book are the 
best. The treatment of the colonial period is rather fragmentary. 

The work may be called suggestive rather than satisfactory. Its profit- 
able use as a text-book requires a skillful teacher, somewhat mature stu- 
dents, or a narrative text-book as an accompaniment. There is a " Teacher's 
Manual," in a separate volume, for use in connection with this work. 

3. Barnes' Brief History of the United States. See Steele, No. iZ,post. 

4. A Students' History of the United States. By Edward Channing. 

New York : Macmillan, 1898. 

Contains 603 pages, fairly indexed. There are 10 colored maps, and 42 
sketch maps in the text. The 119 illustrations have exceptional historical 
value, although the execution is not of uniform excellence. 

The apparatus of helps is elaborate. An introduction on methods of 
teaching is supplemented by suggestive questions appended to each chapter, 
both prepared by Miss Anna B. Thompson. Extended lists of books for 
reference, prefixed to the several chapters, are re-enforced by numerous 
marginal citations of authorities. An introductory section gives three lists 
of books for school libraries. 



1898] Text-books in Americafi history 17 

The distribution of space gives 20 pages to physical characteristics, 36 to 
discovery and exploration, 144 to the colonial period, 43 to the struggle for 
independence, 43 to the period of the Confederation (including an extended 
account of the Constitution), 90 to the period 1789-1815, in to the period 
181 5-61, and 112 to the period since 1861. 

The book is designed for pupils in the last year of the high-school course, 
and assumes previous elementary study of the subject. It is not largely 
stored with facts, but dwells on leading events and critical moments. The 
colonial and revolutionary periods are most successfully treated. Through- 
out, comparatively little attention is paid to military details or the picturesque 
and anecdotal side of American history. The author has sought clearness, 
accuracy, and impartiality of presentation rather than mere attractiveness of 
style ; accordingly, the work will serve best in deepening an interest already 
somewhat developed. 

5. History of Our Country : A Text-book for Schools. By O. H. Cooper, 

H. F. Estill, and L. Lemmon. Boston : Ginn, 1896. 

Contains 441 pages of text, with full index, 7 colored maps, and numerous 
sketch maps in the text. The portrait illustrations, 1 1 of them full-page, 
are fairly well done ; many of the others are fancy pictures. 

An excellent topical analysis follows each main division of the subject, 
with summaries and " thought questions " at the end of each sub-division. 
An appendix gives an outline of American literature. 

Forty pages are given to discovery and exploration, 99 to the colonial 
period, 58 to the struggle for independence, 13 to the period of the Confed- 
eration, 39 to the period 1789-1815, 82 to the period 1815-61, 49 to the Civil 
War, and 44 to the period since 1865. 

The authors are connected with various public schools in Texas, and the 
book has been prepared " in the belief that there is need of a text-book on 
the history of the United States which would represent fairly and impar- 
tially all sections of the Union." Viewed from this standpoint, the narra- 
tive, while giving more than ordinary space to events in the Southern 
States, is remarkably free from prejudice at critical points, and on general 
issues is often colorless. On matters not involving sectional controversy 
the treatment is fairly successful, though brief, and v\'ithout distinctive 
features. 

6. A History of the United States and Its People for the Use of Schools. 

By Edward Eggleston. New York : Appleton, 1897. 

Contains 416 pages, with good index. Three of the 72 maps are colored, 
and 69 are less than full-page. Many of the maps represent small sections 
of the country. There are no plans, diagrams, or tables. The text is pro- 
fusely illustrated, the pictures being generally good in both selection and 
execution. 

The book is furnished with helps in the way of questions, topics for further 
investigation, composition subjects, blackboard illustrations, etc. Some of 
the chapters have brief suggestions for collateral reading. 



1 8 Educational Review [December 

The aim of the author seems to have been to make a readable presenta- 
tion of such aspects of American history as are generally considered inter- 
esting to young people. Accordingly, his treatment of the colonial period, 
and of the military phases of the Revolution and the Civil War, is most de- 
tailed and satisfactory, while constitutional development is not emphasized. 

7. A History of Our Country. By Edward S. Ellis. Boston : Lee & Shep- 

ard, 1898. 

Contains 440 pages of te.\t, with meager inde.x. There are no colored 
maps, but a few sketch maps in black and white, most of them small. The 
illustrations are profuse, consisting mainly of small portraits and fancy 
pictures. 

A paragraph of topics for review follows each chapter, with a skeleton 
outline of important events at the end of each period. Appended to the 
chapters are also useful biographical notes. A few references for reading 
are given in the appendix. 

The distribution of space gives 35 pages to discovery and exploration, 
87 to the colonial period, 84 to the struggle for independence, 6 to the period 
of the Confederation, 48 to the period 1789-1815, 56 to the period 181 5-61, 
70 to the Civil War, and 54 to the period since 1865. 

A primary aim of the author seems to have been so to display his facts as 
to awaken and stimulate a fervid patriotism. To this end, much attention 
is given to military events and exciting incidents, and less to matters not 
easily susceptible of vivid presentation. If that be regarded the patriotic 
view which holds the United States to have been providentially guided, by 
picturesque routes, to the position of chiefest among the nations, the book 
is successful. The style is at times boyish, and causes receive less atten- 
tion than events. 

8. A History of the United States for Schools. By John Fiske. With 

topical analysis, suggestive questions, and directions for teachers, by 
Frank A. Hill. Boston : Houghton, Mifflin & Co., 1894. 

Contains 495 pages, with comprehensive index. Seven full-page colored 
maps, 30 smaller maps in black and white. The maps have well-chosen 
subjects, but are not always carefully drawn. A large part of the 178 
excellent illustrations are portraits. The statistical and documentary matter 
of the appendix is mainly unhackneyed. 

References to collateral reading are given at the end of each chapter, and, 
in an appendix, lists of books treating of the several States and the main 
epochs of the history, together with selected titles of historical novels, 
poems, etc. These lists are least adequate for the later periods. 

In the apportionment of space, 30 pages of the text are devoted to dis- 
covery and early exploration, 99 to the colonial period, 55 to the struggle 
for independence, 4 to the period of the Confederation, 37 to the period 
1 789-181 5, 49 to the period 181 5-61, and 48 to the period since 1861. One 
page is given to the Mexican War, 2 pages to the Monitor-Merrimac 
engagement, 2 lines to Farragut at Mobile, and 5 lines to Gettysburg. 



1898] Text-books in American history 19 

The style is agreeable, but the book is not largely stored with facts. It 
is a pleasing interpretation of early American history with reference to the 
author's well-known views of causes and permanent results, rather than 
a simple, concise, and well-ordered narrative. In the constitutional period, 
its strength is in the entertaining treatment of episodes, rather than in expo- 
sition of fundamental principles and the general course of development. 

9. A History of the United States for Schools. By Wilbur F. Gordy. 

New York : Scribners, 1898. 

Contains 478 pages, with brief index. There are 3 single-page and 
6 double-page colored maps, and 24 maps in black and white. The 
profuse illustrations, many of them fancy pictures, are, as a rule, indiffer- 
ently executed. 

Many topics of minor importance, omitted from the text, are treated in 
notes at the end of each chapter, where are also questions on the text. 
Chronological tables follow each period. Somewhat indiscriminate refer- 
ences to collateral reading precede each chapter. An introductory note 
discusses methods of teaching. 

The 443 pages of text are apportioned as follows : 25 to discovery and 
exploration, 104 to the colonial period, 64 to the struggle for independence, 
9 to the period of the Confederation, 50 to the period 1 789-181 5, 68 to the 
period 181 5-61, 5010 the Civil War, and 69 to the period since 1865. 

The author has aimed to select typical events and to call attention 
primarily to causes and formative influences. As contributing to this end, he 
has emphasized personal elements, local manners and customs, and physical 
conditions. The development of the West receives special notice. Save 
for its selective method, the book is a straightforward narrative, without 
noticeable features. Its style adapts it to the needs of grammar-school 
pupils. 

10. Young Folks' History of the United States. By Thomas Wentworth 

Higginson. New York : Longmans, 1896. 

Contains 439 pages, with moderately full index. The 12 maps are in 
black and white. There are 95 illustrations, many of them fancy pictures. 

There are numerous questions on the text, and an appendix of " books 
for consultation," unclassified. The appendix also contains chronological 
tables. 

Of the 345 pages of text, 24 are devoted to the " earliest inhabitants " 
and " mound-builders," 28 to discovery and exploration, 105 to the colonial 
period, 54 to the struggle for independence, 5 to the period of the Confed- 
eration, 33 to the period 1789-1815, 38 to the period 181 5-61, and 57 to the 
period since 1861. Of 33 pages given to the Revolutionary War, Concord 
and Lexington and the Gaspee affair receive five. 

While stress is laid upon the colonial period and the life of the people, 
with subordination of purely military affairs, picturesque features receive 
rather excessive consideration. The treatment of controverted points is 
fair. The style is agreeable and occasionally graphic. In general, the in- 
terest of the book is in its literary form rather than in its historical substance. 



20 Educational Review [December 

11. A History of the United States for Schools. With an introductory 

liistory of the discovery and English colonization of North America. 
By Alexander Johnston. Revised and continued by W. M. Daniels. 
New York: Holt, 1897. 

Contains 499 pages, fully indexed. Six page maps in colors, 45 small 
maps in black and white. The illustrations, 170 in number, are of a rather 
conventional type — portraits. State seals, and familiar cuts. 

There are chronological summaries at the end of each chapter, and 
occasional statistical tables. There are no references to parallel readings, 
and the bibliography at the end of the volume is hardly adequate. Ques- 
tions on the text are given at the foot of each page. 

Twenty pages are given to discovery and exploration, 75 to the colonial 
period, 38 to the struggle for independence, 10 to the period of the Con- 
federation, 48 to the period 1789-1815. 100 to the period 1815-61, and 136 
to the period since 1861. The treatment of the different periods, though at 
times somewhat vague, is sound and intelligent, and controverted points are 
handled with fairness. 

In its short paragraphs and general typographical arrangement, the book 
adheres to the form long familiar in school histories. The style is rather 
heavy, and the' volume as a whole is a bit dry ; the w-ork is, however, one of 
sound and painstaking scholarship. In formal presentation of the subject 
it occupies a middle ground between the older style of text-book and such 
recent ones as those of Montgomery and Thomas. 

12. The Growth of the American Nation. By Henry Pratt Judson. Mead- 

ville : Chautauqua Century Press, 1895. 

Contains 359 pages, cursorily indexed. Twenty maps, 2 double-page in 
colors, the others small ; 72 illustrations, but no plans, tables, or diagrams, 
and no apparatus of questions or topical suggestions. A few general refer- 
ences are given at the beginning of each chapter. 

In the apportionment of space, the period before 1776 is subordinated, the 
account being restricted to a clear and forcible presentation of important 
characteristics and formative influences, with stress on the American 
point of view. The treatment of the constitutional period is clear, em- 
phatic, fair, and well defined. Particularly suggestive is the discussion of 
slavery. 

The book is a discussion of movements and an exposition of principles 
rather than a detailed statement of facts ; its expressions of opinion, there- 
fore, are often pronounced. It would be used most successfully with 
mature pupils already acquainted with the elements of the subject. 

13. A School History of the United States. By John Bach McMaster. 

New York : American Book Company, 1897. 

Contains 476 pages of text, well indexed. Thirteen large and 14 small 
maps in colors. 40 maps and plans in black and white. The numerous illus- 
trations are fresh and genuinely instructive ; the portraits, however, are 
rather too small to be satisfactory. 



1898] Text-books in American history 21 

The helps consist of summaries at the end of each chapter, with useful 
tabular views. Practical and well-selected references to collateral reading 
are given throughout in footnotes. 

Space is apportioned as follows : 25 pages to discovery and exploration, 
99 to the colonial period, 28 to the struggle for independence, 20 to the 
period of the Confederation, 78 to the period 1789-1815, 118 to the period 
1815-61, and 98 to the period from 1861 to the present time. 

The noticeable feature of the book is the attention given to economic and 
social interests, and their bearing on political events. The style is readable. 
The connection of events and the development of important issues are not 
always well exhibited. 

14. The Leading Facts of American History. By D. H. Montgomery. 

Boston : Ginn, 1898. 

Contains 437 pages, fully indexed. Three double-page and 7 single-page 
colored maps, with numerous sketch maps in black and white. Many of 
the smaller illustrations are indifferently executed ; a few are fancy pictures. 

An appendix contains an extended chronological table, questions on the 
text, a topical analysis for slate and blackboard, and a select list of books 
for reference. Numerous explanatory foot-notes accompany the text. 

Forty-eight pages are devoted to discovery and exploration, 100 to the 
colonial period, 37 to the struggle for independence, 5 to the period of 
the Confederation, 29 to the period 1789-1815, 64 to the period 1815-61, 39 
to the Civil War, and 43 to the period since 1865. 

The book, as a whole, is a successful attempt to present the history of 
the United States to young pupils. There is sufficient information, with 
frequent judicious comment on the significance of events, but a minimum 
of moral reflections. The treatment of the strictly political phases of the 
colonial period is least satisfactory. 

15. The Students' American History. By D. H. Montgomery. Boston : 

Ginn, 1897. 

Contains 578 pages, excellently indexed. There are 3 double-page and 
7 single-page colored maps, 17 maps in black and white, and numerous 
small sketch maps. All but i of the 16 illustrations are in facsimile from 
manuscript or printed originals. 

There are no questions, topical outlines, or other similar helps. The 
appendix contains a select classified list of books, and a list of authori- 
ties used, reference to the latter being made by numerals inserted in the 
text. 

The apportionment of space gives 26 pages to discovery and exploration, 
136 to the colonial period, 46 to the struggle for independence, 10 to the 
period of the Confederation, 63 to the period 1789-1815, 118 to the period 
1815-61, 63 to the Civil War, and 58 to the period since 1865. 

The book is similar in general plan to the same author's " Leading 
Facts," but is intended for older pupils. The treatment is generally 
well-balanced, with emphasis on political and constitutional elements. The 
discussion of controverted subjects attains healthy impartiality. 



2 2 Educational Review [December 

i6. A History of the United States for Schools. By \V. A. and A, M. 
Mowry. Boston : Silver, Burclett & Co., 1897. 

Contains 437 pages, with good inde.x. Sixteen of the maps are colored, 
29 in black and white ; there are also sketch maps of small sections. The 
full-page colored maps are from Mac Coun. The illustrations number 

159- 

Each period is preceded by a blackboard analysis, and followed by 
a chronological table. The body of the text has much accompanying 
matter, biographical and explanatory, in smaller type. The appendix con- 
tains a few familiar documents and useful tables. There is an account 
of sources of information, especially for teachers, at the beginning of the 
book, and at the end a list of supplementary reading for pupils. 

Eighteen pages are given to discovery and exploration, 104 to the colonial 
period, 59 to the struggle for independence, 7 to the period of the Confed- 
eration, 29 to the period 1789-1815, 52 to the period 1815-61, and 93 to the 
period since 1861. 

The story is told with simplicity and directness, and in a way to interest 
young pupils. In the selection of facts, political and military incidents 
predominate, underlying forces being little exposed. The treatment of the 
slavery issue is not profound. Events in their chronological relations 
rather than in their logical dependence are chiefly exhibited, but the esti- 
mates of permanent importance are generally just. The mechanical 
execution of the book is especially pleasing. 

17. A History of the United States of America. With an introduction 

narrating the discovery and settlement of North America. By 
Horace E. Scudder. New York : Sheldon & Co., 1897. 

Contains 520 pages, with full index. Of the 40 maps, 13 are colored, 
8 are full-page, and 6 double-page. The 120 illustrations are well chosen 
and fairly executed. 

At the end of each chapter are questions on the text, search questions, 
and suggestions for compositions and debates. At the close of each period 
is a chronological table and a topical analysis. Brief but well-selected 
references to collateral reading are given in foot-notes. 

Space is about equally divided between the periods before and after 
1789. The political development of the colonies is rather adequately pre- 
sented, as are the causes of the Revolution and the period of the Con- 
federation. The constitutional period is treated topically, rather than by 
Presidential administrations. 

The book is attractively written, but its presentation of the subject, 
though at times of superior merit, is not uniformly definite and well 
balanced. 

1 8. A Brief History of the United States. By J. D. and E. B. Steele. 

New York : American Book Co. 

Usually known as Barnes' history. There are several revisions, the last 
bringing the narrative to 1896. 



1898 J Text-books in American hzsiory 23 

Contains 305 pages of text, fairly indexed. Six double-page colored maps, 
1 1 maps in black and white. Many of the illustrations are fancy pictures. 

There is a plentiful equipment of suggestions to teachers, questions on 
the text, chronological tables, and topical analyses for blackboard use. 
A paragraph of references for reading, not well discriminated, follows each 
main division of the subject. 

The book may be said to represent the picturesque and traditional view 
of American history. Much space is given to details of colonial life, military 
events, and the early careers of prominent men. There is little suggestion 
of extended research, and no sufficient exposition of either constitutional, 
political, or social influences. The book is intended for pupils of grammar- 
school grade. 

19. A History of the United States. By Allen C. Thomas. Boston: 
Heath, 1897. 

Contains 418 pages of text, fully indexed. Four single-page and 4 double- 
page maps, 6 maps in black and white. The maps, while not uniformly 
accurate, are for the most part of superior quality. Most of the 95 illustra- 
tions have historical value ; some of the smaller ones, however, are poorly 
executed. 

The appendix contains, besides useful tables and familiar documents, 
a full list of important dates and an extended topical analysis. Elaborate 
references to collateral reading precede each chapter, while an annotated 
list of important books is given in the appendix. 

The distribution of space gives 10 pages to discovery and exploration, 89 
to the colonial period, 32 to the struggle for independence, 1 1 to the period 
of the Confederation, 37 to the period 1789-1815, 93 to the period 1815-61, 
54 to the Civil War, and 87 to the period since 1865. 

The author has aimed to give special prominence to the constitutional 
period. While the book as a whole is somewhat lacking in literary interest, 
details are well chosen, the treatment throughout is impartial, and the gen- 
eral balance and temper admirable. 






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